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Show DAILY Sunday, May 20. 2007 HERALD A5 I Cyber attacks stalk Estonia Peter Finn THE WASHINGTON Russia. POST TALLINN, Estonia This small Baltic country, one of the most wired societies in Europe, has been subject in - recent weeks to massive and coordinated cyber attacks on Web sites of the government, banks, telecommunications companies, Internet service providers and news organizations, according to Estonian and foreign officials here. Computer security spe- - ' cialists here call it an unprecedented assault on the public and private electronic infrastructure of a state. They say it is originating in Russia, which is angry over Estonia's recent relocation of a Soviet war memorial. Russian officials deny any government involvement. The NATO alliance and the European Union have rushed information technology specialists to Estonia to observe and assist during the attacks, which have disrupted government and led financial institutions to shut down online banking. As societies become increasingly dependent on computer networks that cross national borders, security experts worry that in wartime, enemies will attempt to cripple those networks with electronic attacks. The Department of Homeland Security has warned that U.S. networks should be secured against hackers. Estonia's experience provides a rare chance to observe how such assaults There are strong indications of Russian state involvement," said Silver Meikar, a member of Parliament in the governing coalition who follows information technology issues in the country. "I can say that based on a wide "These attacks were massive, well targeted and well organized." Jaak Aaviksoo Estonia's minister of Defense range of conversations with people in the security agen- ting them down. Hackers defaced other sites, putting, for Russian officials deny that claim. In a recent interview, instance, a Hitler mustache on Kremlin spokesman Dmitri the picture of Prime Minister Andrus Ansip on his political Peskov called it "out of the question." Reached Friday at a party's Web site. cies." Russia-E.U- . summit, he reiter- ated the denial, saying there was nothing to add. A Russian official who the Estonians say took part in the attacks said in an interview Friday that the assertion was groundless. "We know about the allegations, of course, and we checked our IP addresses," said Andrei Sosov, who works at the agency that handles information technology for the Russian government. His IP address was identified by the Estonians as having participated, according to documents obtained by The Post. "Our names and contact numbers are open resources. I am just saying that professional hackers could easily have used our IP addresses to spoil relations between Estonia and Russia," The assault continued through the weekend. "It was like an Internet riot," said Hil-la- r Aarelaid, a lead specialist at Estonia's Computer Emergency Response Team, which headed the government's defense. The Estonian government began blocking Internet traffic from Russia on April 30 by filtering out all Web addresses that ended in .ru. By April 30, Aarelaid said, security experts noticed increasing sophistication. Government Web sites and new targets, including media Web sites, came under attack from electronic cudgels known as botnets. Bots are computers that can be remotely commanded to participate in an attack. They can be business or home computers, and are known as zombie computers. When bots were turned Higher music royalties create Internet static "We're a young industry," said Tim Westergren, of the online radio Live365 WASHINGTON service Pandora. "We don't chief executive Mark Lam is have any legacy on Capitol Hill. We don't have any deep 1 11 percent of gearing up for his second trip to Washington in a month. Americans 12 and older lobbying contacts the way the For 2 12 days. Lam will be listen to online radio in recording industry does ... this is the first time I'd ever called an average week. talking nonstop to congressional staffs in an attempt to my own congressperson.". 1 14 percent of drum up support for a bill that Initially, he said he was "deAmericans 18 to 49. he's hoping will help keep his spondent" about the future of his company. Now, after a few and keep i 16 percent of company afloat weeks of lobbying, he says he thousands of independent InAmericans 18 to 34. is feeling optimistic that the ternet music stations online in I 55 percent of online new fees might be overturned. the process. radio listeners are male. It doesn't hurt that many of At Live365's site, anybody d can create their own SOURCE: Arbitron the young Hill staffers who "radio station" of sorts. work in congressional offices music tend to be Starting at $9.95 a month, music fans can upload their fans who are familiar with his Web-base- d own music and broadcast radio station. The company's service. The Digital Media Assotheir playlists to promote their first bill is due July 15. The rate increases mean favorite bands. By the latest ciation, a tech industry trade that Live365 would owe $7 count, there are about 10,000 group, is trying to get the new million to $8 million this year Live365 stations. Most play royalty fees overturned under in fees, compared with $1.4 a bill called the Internet Radio music that is rarely heard on traditional, or "terrestrial," ra- million last year, Lam said. Equality Act of 2007, spon"We don't have the money to dio stations; though estimates sored by Reps. Jay Inslee, e and Donald Manzullo, pay up," he said. vary, the research firm A similar bill was introSoundExchange's executive puts the U.S. audience for Internet radio at 34.5 milduced in the Senate a little director, John Simson, said lion listeners. the increased royalty fees are over a week ago, sponsored A chunk of the revenue important to a music industry by Sam Brownback, and Ron Wyden, "generated by Internet radio looking for new revenue in a world where compact disc "It's always hard to pass companies like Live365 and rivals like Pandora, is paid out sales are quickly evaporating. legislation," said Jonathan in royalties to an organization Simson disputes the asserPotter, the group's executive called SoundExchange, which tion that the new fees will director. But, he said, "we've was created by the recording have a destructive impact on gone from one sponsor to 82 the diversity of music availindustry. It, in turn, pays the sponsors (in the House) in two able from broadweeks. The energy around artists whose music is being casters. Over the past three this issue is everywhere." played. Listeners generally don't pay anything for tuning Potter says most of that enyears, the online audience into online radio. listening to Internet radio sta- ergy is coming from music fans Those royalty payments are tions has doubled, he said. protesting the fees at a grassabout to go up as the result "It's clear that some of them roots level. SoundExchange, on of a decision this year by the the other hand, has charactercan easily afford (the fees)," he said of the stations. "They ized the bill as nothing more Copyright Royalty Board, a three-judg- e want to pay as little as they than a "cash grab" led by big oversight panel online companies that would can. That's business." that is part of the Library of But broadcasttake money away from artists Congress. At the urging of ers say that the increased who have earned it. SoundExchange, the board decided in March to raise fees, expenses will put them out As the issue plays out, of business. And so Lam, which will eventually triple Westergren jokes that Panfrom their current rates. The like other Web broadcasting dora has come up with a concompany executives, has been tingency plan: "We're building previous rates had expired. What's more, the new rules racking up some air miles and a large boat so we can take will require an annual $500 our company to the Cayman getting to know Washington minimum fee from every Islands." very quickly this spring. Mike Musgrove THE WASHINGTON Who's .POST listening? Web-base- tech-savv- y corn-Scor- e. Estonia has a large number of potential targets. The loose on Estonia, Aaviksoo economic success of the tiny former Soviet republic is built said, roughly 1 million unwitlargely on its status as an ting computers worldwide with paperless were employed. Officials said government and electronic they traced bots to countries as dissimilar as the United proceed. voting. Many common trans"These attacks were masactions, including the signing States, China, Vietnam, Egypt and Peru. sive, well targeted and well or- of legal documents, can be ganized," said Jaak Aaviksoo, done via the Internet with By May 1, Estonian Internet service providers had Estonia's minister of defense, digital signatures. in an interview. They can't be The attacks began on April come under sustained attack. viewed, he said, "as the spon27, a Friday, within hours of System administrators were taneous response of public the war memorial's relocation. forced to disconnect all cusdiscontent worldwide with On Russian-languag- e Internet tomers for 20 seconds to rethe actions of the Estonian forums, Estonian officials say, boot their networks. authorities" concerning the instructions were posted on Newspapers in Estonia rememorial. "Rather, we have to how to disable government sponded by closing access to their Web sites to everyone speak of organized attacks on Web sites by overwhelming basic modern infrastructures." them with traffic, a tactic outside the country, as did The Estonian government the government. The sites of known as a denial of service universities and nongovernattack. stops short of accusing the Russian government of ormental organizations were The Web sites of the Estonian president, the prime min- overwhelmed. Parliament's chestrating the assaults, but service was shut for 12 alleges that authorities in Mos- ister, Parliament and governhours because of the strain on cow have shown no interest in ment ministries were quickly servers. helping to end them or invesswamped with traffic, shut- tigating evidence that Russian state employees have taken Have you heard about this amazing breakthrough technology that's FDA approved, nonsurgical, part. 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